In recent years shaving razors with numerous blades have been proposed in the literature and commercialized, e.g., in U.S. Pat. Pub. 2005/0039337 A1 published on Feb. 24, 2005, which generally describes a type of design that has been commercialized globally as the five bladed Fusion™ razor by The Gillette Company.
In emerging markets, such as China and India, the shaving razor of choice is a standard double edge style razor, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,274,683 issued Sep. 27, 1966, generally describes a typical design used in emerging markets. Consumers in these markets typically do not have the means to purchase the shaving razors that are widely popular in the United States. The standard double edge style razor may be economical, but the user tends to experience nicks, cuts and irritation.
Shaving consumers in emerging markets typically shave infrequently, sometimes only once or twice a week. There is also little or no availability of running water to rinse or clean a shaving razor and the availability of skin cleansers and pre-shaving and post-shaving shaving aids are limited. Pre-shaving aids may include shaving oils, gels and lotions and post-shaving aids may include after shave gels, lotions and moisturizers. A cup or bowl is typically filled with water and is used to rinse the shaving razor. The shaving razors disclosed in the above mentioned patent application are quite sophisticated having have been designed for Western shaving habits, practices and environments, and thus do not deliver an ideal shaving experience for consumers in emerging markets. The shaving consumer in emerging countries have a much different shaving environment as well as different shaving habits and practices than the typical shaving consumer in more developed countries, such as the United States. Even if a less sophisticated version of the popular five bladed Fusion™ shaving razor was available for these consumers, it would still not provide the optimal shaving experience because of their unique habits, practices and shaving environment.
It is therefore desirable to provide a shaving razor with the increased safety of an improved guard, superior long hair cutting performance and improved rinsing and cleaning capabilities.